Bound By Dragonsfyre Book One: A Review

Happy Thursday, Imaginarians! I've got good stuff today. First, tomorrow I will be blogging over at my publisher, Amber Quill and I will have the link posted s soon as it goes live. I hope you'll stop by. Secondly, I'm finally getting to bring you my review for a book that I had been waiting a long time for, Julia Phillips Smith's Bound By Dragonsfyre. It is Book One of the Dragonsfyre trilogy, set in the realm of the Eighth Dominion, a world where nobles hold sway over the land and dragons, the skies.  So without further ado...

Scorpius, the falconer's orphaned apprentice, has seen the savagery wrought by both man and dragon. He heeded his experiences well, learning to survive and keep out of trouble. At sixteen, Fate, in guise of assassins, changes the boy's life forever, sending Scorpius away from his master to become Lord Thibault's man. With his new, elevated position at the young prince's side, Scorpius finds himself neck deep in court intrigues, one of which will give him the knowledge of his true parentage. The other will bring him face to face with a mysterious noble house that has the power to call the fearsome beasts of the sky.

Scorpius is perhaps one of the most compelling characters I have ever read. In a word...Wow! From the opening pages when we first meet him, struggling to find his place at the falconer's side, to last scene as Lord Thibault's man, he captivates. We feel each one of his triumphs and failures as though they were our own.

Julia Phillips Smith delivers a gripping, coming-of-age fantasy tale that is Martin-esque in it's subversion of magical elements for brutal violence and political games. Bound is filled with beautiful descriptions and complex plot twists that warp and weft into an exhilarating, brilliant adventure. The Eight Dominion is a savage wonder, a place you will long to return to. This is a superb beginning to what will surely be an epic fantasy saga.

Bound By Dragonsfyre: Book One of the Dragonsfyre Trilogy
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Intrigued by Julia's book? What are you reading right now? Have a great day and I hope to see you at Amber Quill tomorrow.

Friday Awesome Sauce

It's Friday, yeah,yeah,yeah!!! It occurred to me that there is a lot of good things happening around the blogging community so I'm going to give a little shout out to my fellow writers and friends.

Julia Phillips Smith has a new story out, Bound By Dragonsfyre, Book 1 of the Dragonsfyre trilogy. A fantasy epic that you so do not want to miss. I'll be posting my review here soon.

My friend Jeremy from Retro-Zombie has his incredible artwork available on T-Shirts now. Go on and check them out. I collect tee shirts and I can't wait to get some. Yay Jeremy!!

K.C. Kendricks, author of some of the best erotica out there has a new book out, River Walk. It's the third in a series about a shapeshifter named Sundown and his lover, Fallon, a detective. I am addicted to the series.

Need help marketing your books? I know I do. We should head right on over to Gail M. Baugniet's blog. She is hosting author and marketing guru, Phyllis Z. Miller. Phyllis is talking about  tips for using Amazon and Facebook to spread the word out about our stories.

You Should Know

I've been so neglectful of this lately, but I'll be getting back to this more frequently. Today's You Should Know is Mina over at Some Dark Romantic. I've just started getting to know her and she is incredibly fun, outspoken and smart. Her tag line is brilliant "...middle-aged Goth Mom whose dreams haven't quite breathed their last." Mina blogs on Mondays and Thursdays. She is very supportive of her fellow writers and dreamers. Go one and check her out, she's fantastic.

Have a great weekend and don't forget to come back tomorrow when I post my 50 Favorite Movies in a She Said He Said dual post with Brent at Criminal Movies. And you know there is going to be a whole host of creatures on this list...Werewolves, Elves, Ax Murderers...LOL

Monday Morning And Good News

Since I am feeling inspired and happy at the moment, I'm sharing a pic of Mt. Rainier, one of my favorite places on the Earth.

What is happening my Imaginarians? Sorry I was absent for much of last week. I appreciate all the wonderful comments that you left and I am slowly, but surely making my way through them and onto all of your amazing blogs. It was a tough week as I had some doctor appointments to keep, but so far good news. My diabetes is back under control. My sugar has been holding at 112-118 and my A1C level is at 7.  Yay! And I am down 8 more pounds. Can I get a Hell Yeah?

And if my good news isn't enough, there's more from my good friends around the blogosphere. Vics Caswell over at Hairnets and Hopes has just launched her amazing new venture, Sketcher Girl Studios. Yay!!She does truly astounding artwork and will be designing book covers as well as other illustrative work like iTunes album covers, tattoo designs and children's book art. Julia Phillips Smith, author of the brilliant Saint Saguinus, is being interviewed over at Simply Infatuated. Author Rick R. Reed just received a stupendous review for his latest, Caregiver, over at Seductive Musings. I also want to say that my friend M Hufstader over at The Smoking Pen has an incredible clip of Joss Whedon and a little speech he gave to Equality Now about strong female characters in film. Like I said on M's blog, I am forever grateful that girls are growing up with this man as a cultural influence.

How was everyone's weekend? I got see my nephew play baseball. His team lost 8 to 2, but they played well considering only three of them have prior baseball experience. I also finally saw Battleship. I'll be posting a review shortly. What a rush that was.  Have a great Monday, my friends.

Saint Sanguinus By Julia Phillips Smith

It's no secret that werewolves are my monsters, but I do love an awesome vampire tale. And how fitting that on the very day Mr. Sparkles and his insipid bride hit theaters, I am reviewing a truly dark, dangerous and true-to-the-blood-thirsty-core vampire tale.

Saint Sanguinus is by Julia Phillips Smith, a cool author who puts the monster back into vampire. It is the first of the Dark Ages Vampire trilogy and it is a hellagood start. Peredur is a Welsh warrior fighting Irish raiders when he is brutally cut down by a spear. Cursing God as he bleeds out, he is visited by a darkly compelling man who offers him a chance at another life. He takes it, knowing that something is very wrong, yet a new life, even one without his beloved Tanwen, will be better than no life at all.

So begins Peredur's initiation into The Brotherhood, an elite group of vampiric warriors charged with keeping the other vampires in check to prevent them from destroying humanity. He is determined to make the best of his new life, yet he cannot forget Tanwen.

This book is savagely beautiful with characters that tread a dark path. They are honest, flawed, yet sympathetic. Peredur is made a vampire not through some evil purpose, but because in a frightened, angry moment he grabbed a lifeline. Tanwen is a strong, courageous woman taking her life into her own hands, yet she remains an authentic product of her time.

The Dark Ages setting is one of the most beautiful things about this story. Phillips perfectly captures the social strictures, the superstitions as well as the danger and daily struggle for mere survival. She weaves a spell over her readers with her subtly brilliant dialogue and lush descriptions. I was right there in the cavern with Peredur and the Brotherhood. I could smell the forest, hear the crackle of the fires and oh my God can she write fight scenes in all their bloody, violent glory. Putting this one down was almost impossible and I so can't wait for the second installment.

To find out more about Julia and her work, visit her blog, A Piece of My Mind or visit her web site.

You can purchase Saint Sanguinus here.



Now, onto You Should Know Friday. Today's cool peep is Robyn Alana Engel from the absolutely hilarious and witty blog Life By Chocolate. Her trials and tribulations will make you laugh, cry and want to eat chocolate by the truck load. I just love visiting her and I know you will, too.